Glossary of terms

Last updated: 2026-07-26

Key terms you’ll come across with an estate agent, solicitor, or lender when buying property in the UK. Each entry opens with a one-sentence definition, with a bit of context after.

Conveyancing

The legal process of transferring ownership of a property from one person to another, including checking the title, preparing contracts, and registering the change with the Land Registry. Carried out by a solicitor or licensed conveyancer.

Exchange of contracts

The point at which both parties sign and exchange identical copies of the contract, making the transaction legally binding. Before this point, either party can withdraw without legal consequences.

Completion

The day funds are transferred and legal ownership of the property passes to the buyer — usually a few days to a few weeks after exchange of contracts.

Gazumping

When a seller accepts a higher offer from another buyer despite having informally agreed a price with an earlier buyer. Possible because no agreement is binding until exchange of contracts.

Gazundering

The reverse of gazumping: the buyer lowers their offer shortly before completion, taking advantage of how invested the seller already is in the process.

Chain

A series of linked sale-and-purchase transactions, where buying one property depends on the simultaneous sale of another. If one link in the chain breaks, it can hold up every linked transaction.

Freehold

Ownership that is complete and indefinite, covering both the building and the land it stands on. Typical for houses.

Leasehold

Ownership for a fixed term (the lease), typical for flats — once the lease expires, ownership reverts to the freeholder unless the lease is extended beforehand.

Ground rent

An annual charge paid by a leaseholder to the freeholder for the right to use the land the building stands on.

Service charge

A charge covering the cost of maintaining a building’s shared areas (e.g. lifts, hallways, gardens), usually paid by flat owners to the block’s management.

EPC (Energy Performance Certificate)

A certificate rating a property’s energy efficiency on a scale from A (most efficient) to G. Required when selling or letting a property.

Snagging

A list of minor defects and finishing issues in a newly built property, drawn up before or shortly after handover, for the developer to fix.

Stamp Duty (SDLT — Stamp Duty Land Tax)

A tax paid when buying property in England and Northern Ireland, charged on a sliding scale based on the purchase price — see the SDLT calculator.

Survey

A professional assessment of a property’s physical condition before purchase, available at several levels of detail (Condition Report, HomeBuyer Report, Building Survey).

AIP / Decision in Principle (Mortgage in Principle)

An indicative, non-binding confirmation from a lender or broker of how much you could borrow, issued before you’ve found a specific property.

LTV (Loan-to-Value)

A ratio showing what percentage of a property’s value is covered by the mortgage (e.g. a 10% deposit means a 90% LTV).

Help to Buy

A now-closed government scheme that provided an equity loan toward the deposit on a new build home, available in England until 2023 — mentioned today mainly for historical context.

Shared Ownership

A scheme where you buy a share (e.g. 25–75%) of a property and pay rent on the remainder to the party (usually a housing association) that owns the rest.

EWS1 (External Wall System survey)

A form assessing the fire safety of a multi-occupancy building’s external cladding, introduced after the Grenfell Tower fire — sometimes required by lenders when mortgaging a flat.

Remortgage

Switching your current mortgage for a new one (with the same or a different lender), without a change of property ownership.

Status of this page

A starting set — to be expanded with more terms per ISSUES.md, section M4.